Most potable liquids and foodstuffs have a limited shelf life, and upon being opened are exposed to air (oxygen), which causes the item to quickly expire. Wine, in particular, has four primary causes of spoliation: oxidation, bacteria, heat, and light. Wine is extremely sensitive to oxygen and begins oxidizing immediately upon contact with oxygen. While some exposure to oxygen may be desirable, particularly with respect to red wines, too much exposure will cause the wine to become rancid.
Generally, food and beverage manufacturers use three primary means, vacuum packaging, gas flushing, or active packaging, to preserve their products and extend shelf life. Generally, active packaging, also referred to as modified atmosphere packaging (“MAP”), preserves foods and beverages by using oxygen absorbers and/or desiccants to modify the atmosphere within a package. Oxygen absorbers reduce oxygen levels, preventing oxidation. Desiccants reduce equilibrium relative humidity (“ERH”) to reduce microbial and bacterial spoilage. The spoilage of food and beverages is most commonly the result of oxidation and/or bacterial spoilage.
The three primary options of preservation are used very commonly commercially among food manufacturers, but to a lesser extent at the consumer level. Vacuum and gas flushing require commercial equipment to be executed effectively. Active packaging requires oxygen absorbers/desiccants that are typically packaged in bulk bags of hundreds to thousands of units that become active once opened, which makes them useful to high volume food and beverage manufacturers when the products are packaged, but not to consumers.
Active packaging is considered the most effective technology for preservation because it is able to incorporate both oxygen and ERH reduction, which is not possible with vacuum and gas flushing. Oxygen absorbers lower oxygen levels more effectively than any other preservation method and are extremely cost effective. Studies show oxygen absorbers will lower oxygen levels to under 0.01% in most applications. On the other hand, gas flushing or vacuum sealing can typically reduce oxygen levels to 1 to 5% if executed with commercial equipment.
Regarding potable liquids, devices to preserve wine and other liquids have been on the market for some time. Most of these devices focus on preservation by vacuuming, gassing, or reducing the amount of air within the headspace. For example, one device is disposed in a container that holds a liquid such as juice, milk, or wine. The device includes a cartridge that floats on the top of the liquid to reduce the air volume in the headspace. A shortcoming of this device is that the cartridge sits on the liquid itself, which may be visually unpleasant to consumers or effect the flavor or fragrance of the liquid. Another shortcoming is that to dispense the liquid, the container must be opened, which introduces a large amount of air into the container. A further shortcoming is that the cartridge may fall out of the container when the liquid is dispensed, which may cause the cartridge to break or become contaminated, or it may simply be off-putting to consumers.
Another device includes a cap for a bottle containing a liquid such as wine. The cap has a compartment for storing an oxygen absorber. The compartment includes one or more vents that enable air to enter the compartment, but not the liquid. One shortcoming of this type of device is that in order to pour the liquid the cap must be removed from the bottle. This introduces a significant amount of air into the bottle, which the oxygen absorber may not remove quickly enough to prevent oxidation of the liquid in the bottle.
Another device includes a cap assembly for use with a wine bottle and an oxygen absorber that hangs from the cap assembly via a fixing device. A shortcoming of this device is that the oxygen absorber is able to come in direct physical contact with the wine stored in the bottle, which may not only be visually off putting to a consumer, but may also affect the flavor, color, or fragrance of the wine. Another shortcoming of this device is that cap assembly must be removed in order for the wine to be dispensed, thereby introducing a large amount of air into the bottle, which may not be absorbed quickly enough or overwhelm the oxygen absorber. Another shortcoming is that it does not cause humidity reduction.
Another device uses a latex balloon that is inserted into an open wine bottle. Air is then pumped into the balloon, which causes the balloon to expand and create a seal on top of the wine. A major shortcoming of this device is that the balloon sits on the wine itself, which is not only visually unpleasant to consumers, but also effects the flavor of the wine. Another shortcoming is that the balloon needs to be removed from the bottle when the wine is to be dispensed, which introduces a large amount of air into the bottle. Further shortcomings are that the balloon slowly deflates over time thereby allowing oxygen to interact with the wine, and that the balloons break after repeated use and are relatively expensive to purchase.
Another device uses a vacuum comprising specialized rubber stoppers and a pump that is used to suck the air out of the bottle. Still another device dispenses an inert gas such as nitrogen into the wine bottle to expel the air. A shortcoming of both of these devices is that they are expensive and complicated to use. Another shortcoming of both devices is that the act of pouring requires the preservation device to be removed, which results in an influx of new air into the bottle which then has to be removed by re-introducing the inert gas into the bottle or by pumping out the new air. Further shortcomings with respect to the vacuum device are that the device fails to achieve 80%, let along 95% or 100%, removal of oxygen from the container, and a change in pressure caused by the vacuum alters the fragrance or flavor of the remaining wine.
As noted above a major shortcoming of the existing devices is that in order to pour the liquid (e.g., wine) stored in a bottle or container, the bottle must be opened (usually by removing the preservation device itself from the bottle), which introduces a significant amount of fresh air (oxygen) into the bottle. This is problematic because the oxygen absorber will not be able to remove the newly introduced oxygen quickly enough to prevent the new oxygen from interacting with the liquid. In addition, the introduction of a significant amount of fresh air will cause the oxygen absorber to expire more quickly, either before all of the newly introduced oxygen is absorbed or soon thereafter, which will result in the liquid spoiling before it is completely consumed. Further shortcomings of the aforementioned devices are that they alter the flavor or fragrance of the liquid, are expensive, do not adequately remove oxygen from the container, are not easy to use, and/or are not visually appealing to consumers.